THE VOICE OF CLEAR LIGHT – Special Announcement Issue
News and Inspiration from Ligmincha Institute
Volume 9, Number 5 May 2009
For easy reading, we recommend that you print out "The Voice of Clear Light."
IN THIS ISSUE:
“Transcending Fear” – Now on Our Web Site: Recording of April 22 Live Video Teachings of Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche
Two Exciting Fundraisers for Ligmincha:
Sunday, June 7: Seven-City Windhorse Party
Friday, July 10: Annual Summer Auction at Serenity Ridge
Upcoming Retreats at Ligmincha’s Serenity Ridge Retreat Center
An Invitation From Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche: Summer Dzogchen Teachings
“TRANSCENDING FEAR” – NOW ON OUR WEB SITE: RECORDING OF APRIL 22 LIVE VIDEO TEACHINGS OF TENZIN WANGYAL RINPOCHE
On April 22, 2009, Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche gave a free public talk in Charlottesville, Va., broadcast by live streaming video to audiences worldwide. Rinpoche drew on ancient Tibetan wisdom as he explained how you can transcend fear and live with more open awareness even during times of threat or uncertainty.
To view this 90-minute talk, visit: https://www.ligmincha.org/retreats/live-internet-teachings5.html
TWO EXCITING FUNDRAISERS FOR LIGMINCHA:
SUNDAY, JUNE 7: SEVEN-CITY WINDHORSE PARTY
FRIDAY, JULY 10: ANNUAL SUMMER AUCTION AT SERENITY RIDGE
SUNDAY, JUNE 7: SEVEN-CITY WINDHORSE PARTY
Please join us at a seven-city party on Sunday, June 7. Friends of Ligmincha Institute will be coming together across the United States to raise their positive energy while also raising funds to help Ligmincha pay off its mortgage at the Serenity Ridge retreat center in Nelson County, Virginia.
At the recent Spring Retreat, a key point of Tenzin Rinpoche’s teachings on Windhorse was that without lungta, or windhorse, nothing moves. It makes sense, then, that through a collective intention we
can help ourselves, our cities, and our country to raise windhorse, and by so doing we can begin to see a positive shift in energy.
Everyone’s invited! If you will be near Boston, New York, Philadelphia, Charlottesville, Houston, Los Angeles, or Berkeley on June 7, please join us. In locations where the event is being catered or held in a public space, there will be a $25 fee to attend. In other cities there will be a simple potluck dinner and no fee may be requested. As people gather there may be music or art to enjoy. Following that, those in attendance will be treated to a private, live Webcast from Geshe Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche exclusive to event attendees. Then we will share a meal together and adjourn for the evening.
ON SUNDAY, JUNE 7, THE PARTY BEGINS:
At 12:30 p.m. in Los Angeles and Berkeley, Calif.
At 3 p.m. in Houston
At 4 p.m. on the East Coast
IF YOU’D LIKE TO ATTEND, CONTACT:
Berkeley - Susan Killian:
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Boston - Carol Engender:
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Charlottesville - Candace Byers:
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Houston - Alejandro Chaoul Reich:
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Los Angeles - Raven Lee:
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New York - Mary Ellen McCourt:
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Philadelphia – Dean Grantham:
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HOW THE DONATIONS WORK: Land Fund Donations – In each city, donors have already generously offered to create a matching fund for the party in their locale, anywhere from a few hundred to a few thousand dollars. This means that the amount you and others donate in your area, up to the total of your city’s matching fund, will have double the impact. Those who donate at least $500 to the matching fund are eligible for a drawing for a soul stone blessed by Yongdzin Tenzin Namdak Rinpoche, presented within a satin box marked by this great master’s thumbprint. Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche will pick the winning name out of a hat in Charlottesville that evening. Anyone wishing to donate by charge card to a city's matching fund, please call Lee Hartline at 434-263-6304. In addition, anyone who donates at least $108 at the party toward matching those amounts will be eligible for a drawing that evening for one of seven unique, signed and sealed calligraphies by Geshe Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche, one per city. If you cannot attend the party, please participate in any way you feel moved to. By donating to the city of your choice, you will be eligible for the drawing in that location. Please join us!
FRIDAY, JULY 10: LIGMINCHA’S SUMMER 2009 AUCTION AT SERENITY RIDGE!
**NOTE: The deadline for donating auction items is June 1, 2009. Email Candace Byers (
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) if you have an item to donate.
Each year during summer retreat we celebrate and support Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche’s dream of developing Ligmincha Institute’s Serenity Ridge Retreat Center with a lively auction and banquet. Traditionally, this has been the only public fundraising event that Ligmincha Institute holds to finance land-development projects at Serenity Ridge.
The second wing of the Garuda House is complete. But we still have a large mortgage to pay before we can begin to plan for a new teaching hall and a new building to house a new kitchen, dining room, café and bookstore. We are doing our part to cut costs, and thanks to many dedicated volunteers our current lama house and bookstore are now beautifully renovated. We need your help to continue the development of the retreat center, home of the Bon tradition in the West. Your enthusiastic participation and support are essential at this important time of growth. All donations are tax deductible.
Every year we seek auction donations of quality practice- or shrine-related items that can inspire or deepen our practice. Below are examples of items that have helped to generate lively bidding in the past:
Crystal objects: stupas, crystal balls, malas, phurbas, vajras
Tibetan singing bowls and drums, large or small
Tibetan or English texts that have been used by our teachers
Silver or gold gaus or amulets
Malas made from precious or semi-precious stones
Photos of our teachers or of sacred sites
Thangkas, prayer banners
Items blessed by His Holiness Lungtok Tenpai Nyima, Yongdzin Tenzin Namdak Rinpoche, or Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche
Thank you in advance!
UPCOMING RETREATS AT SERENITY RIDGE RETREAT CENTER
The retreats described below will all take place at Serenity Ridge, Ligmincha Institute’s retreat center in Nelson County, Va. To register, or for more information about teachings in the Bon Buddhist tradition of Tibet, please visit www.ligmincha.org or contact us at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or 434-263-6304.
June 3 - 7, 2009
The Experiential Transmission of Zhang Zhung, Part One: Ngondro - Dzogchen Foundational Practices
With Ponlop Trinley Nyima Rinpoche
This year we are again very fortunate to have Ponlop Trinley Nyima Rinpoche, the head teacher at Menri Monastery, India, teaching these beautiful and essential practices to us. The Ngondro, Part 1 of the Experiential Transmission of Zhang Zhung, is the entrance to a cycle of Bon dzogchen, or “Great Perfection,” teachings, which until the past decade were part of a secret transmission passed one-to-one from master to student. The ngondro teachings, a complete set of practices in themselves, offer instructions for taming, purifying, and perfecting oneself; and are the prerequisite for further study of the Experiential Transmission of Zhang Zhung. Although the practices that make up the ngondro are called preliminary or foundational practices, many practitioners adopt them as their main practice and complete the nine parts several times over the course of a lifetime. Within each of these beautiful and powerful practices is contained the entire path to liberation. The ngondro is the traditional method that provides a solid foundation of understanding and experience upon which a strong spiritual life can be developed. The practices of the ngondro can accompany the practitioner through the years like a lifelong friend. Students who attend this Ngondro retreat with Ponlop Rinpoche will be eligible to study Part 2 of the Experiential Transmission of Zhang Zhung with Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche at our 2009 winter retreat. Retreat cost (includes meals): $525
Please visit Ligmincha’s Web site for further information and to register:
https://www.ligmincha.org/component/option,com_retreat/Itemid,138/retreat_id,35/
June 3 - 7, 2009
Ngondro Practice Retreat
Practice leader to be announced
Students who have received ngondro teachings and transmission are warmly invited to attend this practice retreat, which will focus on the practice of ngondro. This retreat will take place concurrently with the ngondro retreat with Ponlop Trinley Nyima Rinpoche (above); practitioners will meet in the Garuda House meditation room.
Tenzin Rinpoche highly recommends this intensive practice retreat for those students who received the ngondro teachings from him at the 2008 winter retreat as well as for other students who have received ngondro transmission in recent years and are practicing in preparation for the Part 2 teachings of the Experiential Transmission in December 2009.
The ngondro practice retreat offers a wonderful opportunity to experience the benefits of group practice within the boundary of our blessed and protected retreat land. The presence of the Ponlop Rinpoche and other students engaged in study and practice of the ngondro will add a powerful support for deep engagement with these beautiful and essential foundational practices of our lineage.
Special practice retreat price: $225.
https://www.ligmincha.org/component/option,com_retreat/Itemid,131/retreat_id,45/
June 17, 7 - 8:30 p.m. Eastern time (New York time)
Live Internet Teaching
“Finding Hope in the Darkness”
With Geshe Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche
Fear and uncertainty can manifest as darkness, Rinpoche explains, but there is always a light of hope to be discovered within. In this 90—minute Internet broadcast he will discuss methods for clearing away the dark clouds of doubt and confusion to reveal a rising sun of hope illuminating the path ahead. Rinpoche will be teaching from Charlottesville, Va., University of Virginia location to be announced. The public is invited to attend this free talk in person or to view from a home computer. Visit Ligmincha.org for further information closer to the date.
June 21, 2 – 3:30 p.m. Eastern time (New York time)
Live Internet Broadcast
“The Practice of Sherap Chamma”
In this live Internet broadcast, Geshe Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche will guide you to deeply connect with your own innate wisdom and with the love and compassion that naturally radiate from that wisdom. For our Internet audience only. A link to the broadcast site will be posted at Ligmincha.org a few days before the broadcast.
June 21 – June 27
Summer Work Retreat
Free of charge. Whether you join us for one afternoon or the full week, this is a wonderful time to share with sangha and to be of joyful service. Our work retreat includes vigorous work periods, daily meditation practice, and ample time for a swim in the pool or a walk along the Rockfish River. Participants are provided with free tenting and meals, and for those who participate in the entire work retreat there will be a 50 percent discount on one week of the summer retreat.
For more information or to register, please email Ligmincha: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or call us at 434-263-6304.
June 28 – July 18, 2009
Summer Retreat 2009: A-Tri Dzogchen
With Geshe Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche
This summer, at Ligmincha Institute's Serenity Ridge Retreat Center, Geshe Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche will present the complete (15-part) cycle of A-Tri dzogchen teachings. This is the first time that Tenzin Rinpoche will teach this complete cycle in the West during a single retreat. The A-Tri teachings are from one of three major lineages of dzogchen teachings from the Bon Buddhist tradition of Tibet (the two others are the Zhang Zhung Nyen Gyu and Dzogchen lineages). They present very simple, clear and direct instructions for integrating spiritual practice through the three doors of body, speech and mind. Tenzin Rinpoche feels that the three-week format of the summer retreat will create ideal conditions for an in-depth study of this powerful dzogchen system of mind training. Week 1 will focus on practices to purify and awaken awareness of the nature of mind through the body; Week 2 through speech; and Week 3 through the mind. The A-Tri teachings are a way to receive a full cycle of dzogchen teachings in a relatively short time (three weeks, rather than many months or years). These teachings not only are a great introduction for beginners, they also complement study of the Experiential Transmission system from which Tenzin Rinpoche teaches each winter.
Because of the integrated nature of these teachings and the manner in which each week will build on the one before, Rinpoche strongly recommends that people come to all three weeks so they can receive the complete cycle. If this is not possible, Rinpoche suggests you come to at least two weeks. If you are new to Serenity Ridge, or able to come for only one week, Rinpoche recommends that you come to the first week, when an in-depth explanation of the practices will be offered. It is Tenzin Rinpoche's sincere wish that through this intensive study and practice opportunity, each student will find his or her own door to a life that is physically healthy, energetically vital and spiritually fulfilling.
Retreat cost (includes meals; accommodations are available): Week 1 and Week 3: $575 Week 2 (includes auction banquet): $590
FOR MORE INFORMATION about this retreat or to register, visit Ligmincha.org and click on “Retreats,” or go directly to: https://www.ligmincha.org/component/option,com_retreat/Itemid,131/retreat_id,41/
Oct. 7 – 11, 2009
Powa: the Transference of Consciousness
Annual Fall Retreat at Serenity Ridge
With Geshe Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche
Retreat cost (includes meals): $450 received by August 26; $525 received after August 26
To register for any of the above retreats, or for more information about teachings in the Bon Buddhist tradition of Tibet, please visit www.ligmincha.org or contact us at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or 434-263-6304.
***
AN INVITATION FROM TENZIN WANGYAL RINPOCHE: SUMMER DZOGCHEN TEACHINGS
Geshe Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche extends a personal invitation to both prospective and current students to join him for the complete cycle of A-Tri dzogchen teachings, this summer at Ligmincha’s Serenity Ridge retreat center in Nelson County, Va. See Tenzin Rinpoche's letter of invitation below:
Joyful greetings to everyone,
My family and I send our prayers and good wishes to all of you.
As the world is going through these challenging times of war and economic crisis, I hope your meditation practice and spiritual pursuits are right there to support you in dealing with any challenges you are now facing individually.
During difficult moments, engaging with the practice on one’s own or during group retreat is a meaningful way to address the needs of the soul and the heart. Therefore, I particularly wish to invite all of you to the 2009 annual summer retreat.
In recent months I have seen an amazing response from many people who feel driven to attend and seriously follow the cycle of Bon dzogchen teachings from the Experiential Transmission of Zhang Zhung, which is offered over a period of several years during our winter retreats at Serenity Ridge in Nelson County, Virginia. I am very happy to see this level of enthusiasm and commitment to these important teachings.
As we are unable to accommodate everybody who wishes to come to our winter retreat, one solution is to attend the A-Tri dzogchen teachings this summer. If you can participate in all three weeks of the summer retreat (June 28 through July 18), you will experience in a relatively short time span the entire 15-part cycle of A-Tri dzogchen teachings. As a complete path to enlightenment, the A-Tri teachings are just as important as the Experiential Transmission teachings; they comprise everything from the ngondro (foundational practices) to preparation for dark retreat. They are an excellent introduction for beginners, and they also support and complement the ongoing study of the Experiential Transmission teachings. Therefore, I strongly recommend trying to come to all three weeks if possible.
The A-Tri teachings are from one of three major lineages of dzogchen teachings from the Bon Buddhist tradition of Tibet; the other two are the Zhang Zhung Nyen Gyu and Dzogchen lineages. They give very simple, clear and direct instructions for integrating spiritual practice through the three doors of body, speech and mind.
I hope you will be able to join us at Serenity Ridge this summer.
With all my love and best wishes,
Geshe Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche
